Little Red Raider

Saturday we took Bailey to his first Texas Tech game. We all had a great time. As you know, Jay was in the Goin' Band from Raiderland and Saturday was Alumni Band Day. Some of Jay's college band friends got to see Bailey for the first time. Bailey and I got to march down to the stadium with Jay and the band. Bailey loved all the music! It was a long day for him, but he did wonderfully!

Bailey is doing new things all the time. He can push up while on his tummy and is so proud of himself when he does it. He can also roll over from his back onto his tummy. Almost every time I lay him on his blanket to play, he immediately rolls onto his tummy (then after a few minutes cries because he can't get back to his back).

He had his 4 month appointment last week and his doctor said he is doing great. He is in the 70% for both weight and height (15 lbs and 26 inches). Jay and I are having such a great time with Bailey, he is such a wonderful baby with such a cheerful personality. We are so blessed!

Four Months Old

Another busy week is coming to an end! We have had so much going on lately, I have been bad about posting. Our computer is at the repair shop, so I will not be posting pictures on this blog. I am hoping to hear something tomorrow about our computer and am keeping my fingers crossed that it will not cost a fortune to fix.

Jay is on a "guy trip" this weekend with Jarod and our neighbor. They went down to Corpus to dove hunt and fish. He was excited about going, but sad to leave Bailey. He left today and will be back Sunday, so it's the longest he has been away since Bailey was born.

Bailey is doing new things all of the time. He can push up now, and really enjoys being on his tummy surrounded by his toys. He can almost roll over. He is working hard, and only lacks getting one arm out from under him. We have been trying a little baby food the past week (he's not completely ready, so we just give him a few bites every now and then). Not a huge fan of the rice cereal. He acts like he is having convulsions (VERY DRAMATIC). He really likes bananas, but the peaches seem a little tart. Those are the only 3 things we have tried...aside from chocolate, whipped cream (thank you, Jim Newton) and popsicles (Jay gets credit for that), of course. Next week Bailey goes for his 4 month shots. I am hoping it is less tragic than last time. I am not sure either of us could go through that again!

Oh, for any of you reading Dallas' blog, she has the link to baby Max. I have included that link too. Please go to it if you have never read it before. Scroll down to the bottom and read from the begining. He is making little improvements each day and could certainly use continued prayers! http://julian-family.blogspot.com/

Our First Family Vacation

Okay, I know it has been a long time since I have updated our blog. Our computer is sick with a virus and we haven't taken it in yet (I am using Jay's work computer and will have to upload pictures later).

I am sitting at the airport in Corpus and for those of you who have never been here, it is awful! There is one magazine stand and one little sandwhich shop. Needless to say, like good passengers we arrived 2 1/2 hours early. What a mistake! But, to the good part of our vacation...

Jay had 3 depositons over the past two days in Corpus, so he brought us along (because he flies so much for work, he had earned a free flight, which I got to use). Bailey was terrific on the flights. It can be very stressful to fly with an infant..my cousin Dallas can sympathize.

Surprisingly, each deposition only lasted 1 hour, so we had a lot of fun family time! Yesterday we went to the hotel pool (we got to stay at a very nice hotel because that was where the depos. were at) and went to lunch at a local place called Waterstreet. After Jay's afternoon depo. we drove our rental car to Port Aransas and took Bailey to the beach. He really liked the water. We only stayed 1 hour because we thought that was enough sun for Bailey (of course, only a small part of that hour was spent in the water. By the time we laid out the towels, put on Bailey's swimsuit and lathered him with sunscreen, etc. it had been 30 minutes. Oh, did I mention he needed to eat as soon as we got all settled :) ). Then we ate at the Crazy Cajun..they dump the food right on the table! cab legs, shrimp. corn and potatoes. It was great! We were all 3 exhausted by the time we got back to corpus, but had a great time. We took some pictures that I will upload at some point.

Since it has been so long since I have updated, I am sure there is more to write, but I can barely remember yesterday (hazard of being a new mom). Have a great Friday!

Growing Up So Fast

Nine days ago Bailey began sleeping in his room. When I came home from my night out with the girls Jay had made the decision that Bailey would begin sleeping in his room that night. Needless to say, I was not thrilled with this last minute decision...I didn't even have time to prepare myself. However, it went really well, better than I had expected. Of course, the first night, I just laid in bed listening to the monitor, hearing his every movement and wanting to bring him back into our room (where his pack-n-play was anxiously awaiting)...but, I did not. I made it through the entire night. Bailey actually slept until 6:30 am! The longest he had ever made it. Now Bailey sleeps until 6:30 or 7:00 each morning, Jay and I play with him in our bed for 15 minutes. Then, while Jay gets ready for work, Bailey eats and then the two of us go back to sleep for about an hour. It's a nice routine. Of course, now that he is sleeping so much at night it has cut down on his daily naps, occasionally making it harder to get things done during the day, but we are adjusting.

I still can't believe how fast he is growing. It almost feels like the past 3 months are a blur. I am trying to hang on to each second with him. He is holding his head up for longer now. He has also started to enjoy the Baby Einstein videos. He is mezmerized by all of the sounds, movements and colors. Another favorite of his is going on walks. He loves being in his jogging stroller and watching the world go round.

Tomorrow night Bailey is being officially babysat for the first time. By that, I mean the first time someone other than family has kept him. Our friends who live across the street will be keeping him for a few hours and they are very excited (they are our age and have a 7 year old, so we feel very comfortable). They love Bailey and I know they will have a great time.

My Week As a Working Mom

Don't get me wrong, I definitely consider myself a "working" mom, but last week I got paid for it. I filled in at my father-in-law's office Monday-Wednesday and also on Friday. It was nice to bring home a paycheck and have adult conversation during the day. It was also nice to have a change of pace. However, I was VERY ready to be back home with Bailey and I am very blessed and happy that I do not have to work outside of the home.

I have been given the opportunity to bring in some extra money. Our neighbors (and friends) have an 8 year old daughter that needs to be picked up from school each day. I will pick her up at 3 pm and three days a week she will stay with me until 3:30 and the other two days until 5:30. Very easy work for good money. We usually run any errands in the morning, and go to the gym later in the evening so we shouldn't have to adjust our schedule much. I thought it would be a good way to help out our friends and to make some money.

On Saturday I went out with the girls (it was my friend, Brandi's bachelorrette party) while Jay took care of Bailey. I think they had some good male bonding time and I really enjoyed having a "night on the town". I have to admit, it was strange not carrying diapers around with me and being spit-up free the entire evening!

Sorry there is only one picture, I have not been on top of things this past week. As you can see, Bailey is growing like a weed. He will be 3 months on Friday. He weighs 13 lbs, 4 oz and is 24 inches long! Today I packed away the clothes that he has grown out of. It was a little sad. Although, he still has a lot of 0-3 month clothes that are too big. Over the weekend we got Bailey a bumbo seat (all of my friends have them). Even though he can't hold his head up for long periods of time, he loves sitting in his new seat. He always wants to be propped up on your lap or on the couch, so this is right up his alley. Mister curious can see everything! More later, have a wonderful week!

My Child, The Thumb Sucker

Well, I think it's official; Bailey is a thumb sucker. My father in law told me there is no stopping it (I have been trying to immediately replace his thumb sucking with a pacifier). This morning I woke up at 5:30 a.m. to Bailey ravenously sucking his thumb (of course, he was hungry). He also decided that he had had enough sleep for the night and was ready to play. Therefore, Jay and I were up for the day.

Today, Bailey had an issue with spitting up after each feeding. Not just spitting up immediately after, but up to 2 hours after! And we are talking MAJOR spitting up. At one point my sister, Jill was holding him and he spit up on his bib. She decided to use it to wipe his face and instead, smashed spit-up all over him! Bailey thought it was great! He was smiling like crazy! Of course, he managed to cover her in spit-up too.

Right now he is in his crib and I can hear him talking to his mobile. Luckily, he still loves it. He is getting such a great personality! He loves to smile! He is also using his legs to push off of your lap. Last week he found himself in the mirror. He isn't quite sure what he is looking at but he will lock eyes with his reflection (I am sure he is thinking "who is that handsome devil?").

Have a wonderful weekend!

Boy, Can My Child Scream!

Today was tough! Bailey had his first set of shots and it was not fun. He received a total of three. When they gave him the first shot he seemed more surprised than anything. But when the nurse grabbed his other leg to give the second shot he started kicking like crazy...and then came the blood curdling scream! For the third shot it only got worse. By this time his leg muscles were so clenched that he bled quite a bit. Poor baby. During Bailey's shots, I held him and my sister, Jill was patting my back (I think she was more worried about me). I can't believe I have to do this again in two months! His cousin Andrew was so sweet. While Bailey was crying, Andrew was patting his back and his head. Little did Andrew know that his turn was next. I could not bear to stay and watch Andrew get his shots, but was told it was bad. He is old enough to know what's going on. I am happy to report that thanks to Tylenol, both boys are recovering well.

Bailey is ten weeks old today and is changing so quickly! He is insistent about being able to look around and see what's going on in the world. He would barely let me get ready this morning. I had to prop him up on my bed using pillows so he could sit and see me while I got ready. He is holding his head up...when he wants to and is SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT (I consider sleeping until 4:30 or 5:00 am "through the night"). There were times I have wondered if I would ever get more than a total of 5 hours of sleep.

He has also began the adorable habit of licking the wrist or shirt of whomever is holding him. It is very cute, he looks like a little kitty cat. He also knows where his thumb is and how to suck it. Right now I am trying to decide which habit I would rather break....sucking his thumb, or sucking a pacifier. I am leaning towards pacifier, so every time I catch him sucking his thumb (or his hand) I quickly replace it with the pacifier. I can think of a million more cute things to write about, but I will stop for now....

Take Two

Okay, I am still trying to figure out the picture thing. I uploaded a few on my first posting, and I will add others on this one. It would only allow me to upload 5. Dallas, any ideas to allow me to upload a slideshow with a lot of pictures?

Today Bailey's Grandmommy came to visit and they cuddled and played all afternoon. He is such a happy little boy; even with a cold!

The air conditioner is not working in our house right now and as you can imagine, it is HOT. Poor Bailey has spent most of the day wearing only his diaper because he has been sweating. Hopefully it will be fixed tomorrow and my child will no longer be laying around with only a diaper and a pacifier...classic!

I'm New at This...

More and more of our friends are creating blogs. We have been convinced this will be a good way to keep friends and family posted on the "Newton News." I will try to update each week, but for those of you who read Dallas' blog do not expect mine to be nearly as creative!

Bailey is now 2 months old and weighs 11 lbs 13 oz (the 75th percentile) and is 23 3/4 inches long (the 80th percentile). His pediatrician assures me there is no need to begin dieting.

Bailey is growing so fast and we are loving every second! He has a favorite toy...his new mobile (Dallas, thanks for the recommendation). He can stare at if FOREVER. I will sit in his room and listen to him talking to it and giggling. It is very cute! Mornings are his favorite times...he is all smiles. It is Bailey and Mommy's special time together each day.

We hope you enjoyed reading our first entry and will continue to send pictures through the Kodak Gallery. Until next time...